


66. stay over

by georgiehensley



Series: 100 ways to say "i love you" [6]
Category: The OC (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode Related, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Literal Sleeping Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-04
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2020-02-18 14:43:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18701674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/georgiehensley/pseuds/georgiehensley
Summary: it's late when ryan hears noise in the model home.or, the one set during 1x02 where seth cries, accidentally comes out, and falls in love all in one night.





	66. stay over

**Author's Note:**

> i should have gone to bed a while ago but i was watching this episode of the show tonight and while i know seth is not canonically lgbt on the show bc this came out in the early 2000s, luke calling him the q slur made me think about what would happen if seth _were_ , so i wrote a scene where he reacts to that & comes out to ryan. and i also ship them because how could i not? ryan’s known him for, like, what, a week or something, and is already defending him against asshole rich kids. i literally cannot not ship them.
> 
> (and i really started watching this show bc of adam's appearance in shazam and the comparisons of seth to freddy and yeah, ryan & seth are basically billy & freddy so shipping them was inevitable.)
> 
> two other quick things - i'm obviously rambling here bc i am Tired - i made seth autistic bc i Can, and this wasn't originally intended for this fic collection but i didn't feel like making a separate google doc for this so i managed to work a line from the list in there. woohoo!

it's late when ryan hears noise in the model home. he’s trying to fall asleep, tossing and turning in the makeshift bed marissa and seth brought him, which is essentially just a sleeping back on a cold, hard floor inside of a tent to give him  _ some _ sense of privacy, when he hears the echo of footsteps against the walls of the house. he grabs a flashlight and unzips the tent, crawling out and standing, being careful to keep quiet as he goes to investigate the noise.

when he reaches the landing, he sees a figure down in the entryway of the house, sat on the ground, legs crossed, and… crying?

ryan stills, almost holding his breath to stay as quiet as possible, and yes, those are soft sobs and hiccups he hears coming from the figure below. as they take a shaky breath, ryan swears that he recognizes them. he shines his flashlight downstairs, away from the figure but just enough to illuminate them.

“seth?”

the figure jumps, head turning - and big brown eyes shine in the darkness as they catch the light of ryan’s flashlight. it also highlights the tears that streak seth’s face, which he’s quick to wipe away with the ends of his sleeves.

“hey, ryan,” seth says sheepishly, avoiding ryan’s gaze as he descends the staircase. 

“you alright, man?” ryan asks, stepping off the last stair and walking closer to seth. he sits down next to him.

seth sniffles, wiping his nose with the edge of his sleeve. “i’m fine. totally fine. better than fine, actually. great, even.”

“then why are you here?”

seth sighs. “i didn't wanna be home. i… i kept thinking about what luke said about me at the diner, what he called me. and then i wondered if everyone thinks that way, if my parents think that way about me. because it's not like i ever talked about dating girls, or brought one home to meet them. so they’ve probably started to wonder and speculate--”

“and what’s so bad about it, anyway?” ryan asks. “if you  _ did _ like guys?”

“it’d just give guys like luke another reason to make fun of me,” seth says. tears start to well up in his eyes again. he blinks several times to keep them from slipping out. “‘cause i’m not a surfer like them, or a bad boy like you. i’m a gangly, dorky guy with a high voice and a lisp and autism and being  _ gay _ on top of all that…” he breaks off, swallowing the lump in his throat. a tear slips down his cheek. “i’d be the laughing stock of the oc.” 

ryan’s quiet, processing seth’s words. seth’s mind races in the silence, scared that the other boy would judge him too, figuring that he must be smart enough to read between the lines and notice the implication that seth  _ is _ actually gay. his hands start to shake as he thinks of ryan kicking him out of his own mother’s model home, fleeing town the next day and leaving seth alone and friendless once more. (not that they're really friends yet. seth isn’t quite sure  _ what _ label to use, but they’re definitely more than strangers or acquaintances at this point.)

“there’s nothing wrong with who you are,” ryan says finally, and seth jumps a little as his voice breaks the silence, bringing him out of his thoughts. “if you like guys, girls, or no one, it's cool. these people are just too stupid to see it that way.”

seth can't help but smile a little. “you really hate oc kids, don’t you?”

ryan shrugs. “at least luke and his crew. you're pretty cool, though.” 

seth full-on smiles now. “thanks. even if i might like guys?”

“even if you liked me.”

seth tenses at ryan’s words, hearing them spoken aloud bringing home what seth’s been really worried about the past couple days - his feelings for ryan. not that he'd really call them “feelings” after only knowing him for a little while, but - it's definitely a crush. because ryan’s so  _ different  _ from the normal oc guys that seth can't help but feel drawn to him; ryan’s like a mystery that seth wants to solve, so unpredictable that seth can't wait to see what he does or says next.

once again, he’s brought out of his thoughts by said mystery, the blond placing a warm hand on seth’s knee.

“ _ do _ you like me?” he asks, and for the first time in seth’s  _ life _ , his brain practically shuts down. his gaze falls to ryan’s lips, not that far from his own, and all his thoughts fly out the window, the only thing on his mind being his desire to feel those lips against his own. ryan must be a mind reader, because he's suddenly leaning forward and giving seth exactly what he wants. his lips are dry and a little chapped but seth’s on cloud 9 nevertheless, his eyes falling shut in ecstacy.

he’s a little dazed when ryan pulls back just a few moments later, blinking a few times and biting his lip to remind himself that he isn't dreaming.

“i never answered you,” he says.

ryan smiles, looking a little sheepish. “you didn't have to; your face said it all.”

seth blushes. “well, my night just turned around completely.”

ryan laughs. “stay over? it gets kinda lonely here at night.”

“ooh, the rebellious outsider wants the dorky gay kid to keep him company? how shocking!”

“come on, you said you didn't want to go home anyway.”

“that  _ is _ true.”

ryan stands and holds his hand out. seth takes it and stands as well. ryan still holds his hand even as they go upstairs and head back into the bedroom. he only lets go to hold the flap of the tent open, allowing seth to go in first. seth does and ryan follows, zipping the tent shut behind them. 

it's a tight squeeze but they make it work, choosing to turn the sleeping bag into a blanket for the two of them to share. seth even slides in closer to ryan, though he hesitates before resting his head against his shoulder.

“is this okay?” he asks, feeling his heart start to beat faster inside his chest. he feels an arm wrap around his waist, pulling him in even closer.

“yeah,” ryan says, and his lips brush against seth’s forehead, breath fanning out against his skin. seth shivers despite the warmth.

“goodnight,” he says quickly, trying to urge his heartbeat to slow down.

“goodnight, seth,” ryan says back.

ryan falls asleep first, because of course he does, but the sound of his even breaths soothes seth, allowing him to relax into ryan’s now lax embrace and soon drifting off as well, a smile on his face.


End file.
